


How Laurent charmed a foreign Prince and achieved peace, all in two days

by mfingenius



Series: Courting Traditions [1]
Category: Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat
Genre: Auguste (Captive Prince) Lives, Don't copy to another site, Gen, Laurent has a crush on Damen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-06-17
Packaged: 2020-05-13 14:59:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,483
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19253533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mfingenius/pseuds/mfingenius
Summary: Damianos finds the Prince of Vere in the forest, the day before the battle of Marlas, and brings him back to his camp. Laurent is... something else.Nikandros is done with his friend's thoughtlessness.





	How Laurent charmed a foreign Prince and achieved peace, all in two days

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!! This isn't lamen yet bc Laurent is thirteen in this and Damen nineteen (as in canon) buuuuut i'm considering making it a series where they court!! Please let me know if you're interested :D

Damen isn’t supposed to be out here, but he needed a break from the military camp. He’s fighting Crown Prince Auguste tomorrow, and he needs his nerves to settle if he wants to win the war, so he’d thought it wise to go for a walk in the forest near the camp.

He thought he’d be alone.

He was  _supposed_ to be alone.

It’s evident he’s wrong, however, when he hears a choked sound.

He looks around, tries to see anything between the thick vegetation, and almost think he’d imagined it when another sound reaches his ears. A sob. 

Then another. And then another.

He follows the sounds. The first thing he sees is the dead body; a Veretian, dressed in red, with a knife between his ribs. A boy, pale blonde hair shining, hands covered in blood, kneeling over the body.

“Hello,” He calls cautiously in Veretian, because the boy is laced into Veretian clothing.

“I - “ The boy doesn’t even look at him. “I - I killed him.”

Damen approaches him cuatiously.

“He - he - tried to - to kill me and - and - I  _killed_ him.” In a split second, the boy is on his feet, and, for a moment, Damen thinks he’s going to try and run away. The only thing he does, however, is turn away and vomit.

Damen pities him, despite being Veretian. He remembers the first time he killed someone, and the haze that followed it afterwards. He knows every soldier has experienced that, but this boy isn’t a soldier, he’s a  _child_.

A child, who is now staring at the body with a bloodless face looking like he might faint at any given moment.

Damen tightens his lips as he grabs the knife and pulls it out. He wipes it on the grass and stands. He presses the hilt of it into the boy’s hand, and, when he doesn’t react, still staring at the body, horrified, he closes the boy’s fingers around it.

“My name is Damianos.” He says. “What’s your name?”

“Laurent,”

“Alright, Laurent,” Damen says gently. “Is there someone I can message for you?”

“My brother,” Laurent says, voice hollow. “Auguste.” 

Damen’s brain stops for half a second.

 _Auguste_. As in Crown Prince  _Auguste._

Fuck, but this boy doesn’t even know what he’s done, does he? If King Theomedes, or even Kastor had been the one to find him, this war would be over. He’d hold him hostage until King Aleron surrendered. Damen could do the same.

But he won’t.

He leads Laurent back to his camp - the kid must be in a hell of a shock if he’s just allowing himself to be taken into an Akielon military camp, by the Akielon Crown Prince - and sneaks him into his tent, lest someone figure out he is the Crown Prince’s younger brother. Laurent still seems to be in shock; he only moves when Damen specifically tells him to, otherwise staring into nothing with a haunted look on his face.

Damen washes the blood off his hands, and then gives him a chiton to change into. A boy dressed in Veretian clothing in an Akielon military camp will drag too much attention, more than his face already will.

“Who is he?” Nikandros asks when he steps into Damen’s tent. Damen had sent one of the slaves to go get him, and he expected he’d have longer to come up with a reasonable explanation. As it is, he has nothing, so he decides to tell the truth.

“That’s Prince Laurent of Vere.” He says in a low voice, to ensure no one outside hears. “Auguste’s brother. I found him in the forest.”

Nikandros looks over at Laurent - sitting, pale, looking like he might be sick - and his frown deepens.

“What are you going to do?” he asks, and Damen is thankful for the lack of judgement in his voice, even if it still hangs between them, unsaid.  _You know what the King would want you to do_.

“I’ve already sent a messenger to Auguste,” Damen says. At the sound of Auguste’s name, Laurent’ brain seems to kick into overdrive again.

“Auguste,” he says, stunned. He stands. “I - I need to warn Auguste - that was one of my Uncle’s guards, it - it has to be him, I - I need to let him know I’m fine-”

“Laurent,” Damen says, staying sitting so as to be less intimidating. “I’ve already sent a messenger to Auguste. He knows you’re here.” Which, in hindsight, should’ve been a longer message, because ‘I have Prince Laurent in my military camp’ holds a wide field of interpretation, many of those as a threat. “We’re just awaiting for his response. I - I’ll get you back to him, I promise.”

Nikandros’s frown deepens, and Damen knows he’s aware that that is a promse he most definitely can’t be sure he’ll keep, but it returns a little bit of the color to Laurent’s face, so Damen will stand by it.

“I promise,” he repeats, when Laurent looks uncertain. 

“You’re Akielons.” Laurent says. “We’re at  _war_. You could demand anything for my return.”

Damen tilts his head in agreement. “I could.”

“The King would.” Laurent says, accusatory. “Any soldier with a brain would.”

Damen laughs and shakes his head, and Laurent evidently didn’t expect that reaction, because he frowns tightly. 

“I’m  _insulting_ you.” He protests.

“I know,” Damen says, unable to quite wipe the smile off his face. “Do you have any experience in military strategics?”

Laurent nods mutely.

“Come, then.” Damen says. “Sit. You can tell us where a neutral meeting would be best.”

Laurent comes closer to the maps - Nikandros is most definitely judging Damen now, but Damen ignores his friend - and points out various flaws on the placing of Akielon troops and defences with a reserved, wary look at Damen, and when Damen only encourages him, he proceeds to correct and entirely change all of their military strategies, dragging Nikandros into - begrudging - conversation of Military tactics.

When Nikandros is dismissed, Damen turns to Laurent to ask him if he’d like to eat, but the blond is already asleep in Damen’s bed.

Damen shakes his head fondly and takes the floor.

*

“We are  _not_  attacking them.” Auguste snaps, for what feels like the thousandth time that night. After an Akielon messenger had arrived with news about Laurent - possibly the worst news short of ‘we’ve killed him’ - he had immediately stormed into his father’s tent, and now him, the King, and his uncle are arguing over the best course of action. “If they even see us coming they could kill Laurent in a heartbeat.”

“If they have Laurent, they hold all the cards.” His uncle points out. “They can ask for anything. They could kill him, anyway.”

Auguste knows that. There’s a terrifying, suffocating chance that Laurent may already be dead, but he can’t think about that, because if Laurent’s dead, then this is it. Auguste doesn’t want any more war, any more  _anything_  without his brother.

“Then they ask for whatever they want.” He says. “I don’t care. I’m not leaving Laurent there.”

“One of my soldiers was guarding him.” his Uncle says. “He’s not back, which means he’s dead.” he doesn’t look very bothered. “Which means the Akielons killed him to take Laurent. Gods know what they will do to Laurent, if they killed a meaningless soldier.”

His father, King Aleron, has been utterly silent while his brother pushes for more war and Auguste for peace. Now, he speaks.

“I agreed to give Auguste command.” He says. Laurent always believed his father didn’t care for him, and though Auguste did not truly believe it, King Aleron does look minimally worried at the fact that his youngest son is in an Akielon military camp in the middle of a war. “We will proceed how he thinks is best.”

His Uncle looks resentful - Auguste knows there’s something odd going on, but he can only think of Laurent - and Auguste finally exhales.

“We’re doing this peacefully.” He says with finality.

*

Crown Prince Auguste’s messenger arrives the next day. He allows Damen to set time, place, and terms, and Damen tells him to meet at Marlas, at midnight - he needs to sneak Laurent out unseen - and tells him to come alone. He doesn’t want this to turn into a full out battle, and it will if his soldiers find out he’s handing over the prince of Vere without asking for anything.

He also allows Laurent to write to his brother - he tells him he’s fine, that he’s with Prince Damianos, and assures him that he hasn’t been mistreated in any way - and then sends the messenger off.

Laurent, though he was wary of Damen - and all others - at first, seems to be having a good time. He’s endlessly curious, always asking questions and wanting to know  _everything_ , staring at things with wide blue eyes and speaking a mile a minute.

Damen’s grown oddly fond of him. 

Since Laurent was getting restless cooped up in Damen’s tent with nothing to do, Damen offered him the books that were brought - not many, and all on military strategies or politics - not interesting in the slightest to a thirteen year old boy - or at least a thirteen year old Damen - but Laurent reads them all with avid interest, settling in Damen’s bed like he owns it.

Damen can’t bring himself to be bothered.

*

His father wants to send troups with him, even though the messenger clearly stated for Auguste to come alone.

Auguste won’t risk anything happening to Laurent, so he lies on what time and place the meeting is, and then sneaks out of his tent at night to go alone.

He gets there before midnight, so he can hear when Damianos’s horse approaches. Damianos is massive, even at nineteen, and, for a second, Auguste thinks Laurent isn’t with him. However, when he gets off his horse, Laurent is revealed to be in the saddle - previously hidden by Damianos’s form - and he looks… unharmed.  _Happy_ , Auguste would say, did he not think that was impossible.

“Laurent,” Auguste breathes, relieved, and hugging him as soon as he’s within arm’s range. He kneels by his brother and grabs his face, checking him over quickly to make sure he’s unharmed.

“I’m fine, Auguste,” Laurent says, rolling his eyes and smiling. “You would not believe all the things I learned. Damianos let me see his military maps - not like father - and their strategics are horrendous, but I helped him fix it.”

Auguste blinks at his brother, who’s smiling proudly, seemingly not seeing a single problem with seeing the enemy’s military strategies, discovering they’re bad, and  _fixing_ them.

“I-” There are a lot of things he could say right now, but he merely shakes his head and breathes out relieved. “I’m glad you’re alright, Laurent.”

He remembers something his uncle said. 

“There was a guard with you.” he says. “Did they kill him?”

He doesn’t understand why the Akielons would kill a guard to kidnap Laurent and then treat him well.

A sorrowful look passes over Laurent’s face. “No. I did.”

“What?” 

Laurent’s never killed anyone. Laurent isn’t supposed to  _have_  to kill anyone, he is  _thirteen_. 

“Uncle has committed treason.” Laurent says, solemnly. “The guard tried to kill me. He told me, before I killed him, that he was also planning to kill you and father.”

He’d told the guard he’d be beheaded for killing the prince, and the guard had laughed and told him that no one would do anything once his Uncle killed the King and Auguste as well.

Auguste seems stunned, first, then furious. “He’ll get what he deserves.” he kisses the top of his brother’s hair lighlty and stands. “It’s time to get you home.”

He turns to Damianos, wary but respectful, and extends a hand.

“Thank you,” he says. “For getting him back to me.”

Damianos nods, and shakes his hand. “It was the right thing to do.”

He walks to his horse, ready to mount, and notices Laurent lingering with a blush on his cheeks, digging his heel into the dirt. Damianos smiles kindly and kneels in front of Laurent.

“I’ll push for peace,” Laurent offers. “I don’t know if they’ll listen to me, but - I - Akielons aren’t as bad as I thought they were.”

Auguste thinks that’s as close to a compliment as he’s heard Laurent say to anyone who isn’t him. It’s… unsettling.

“Oh, I think you can convince them,” Damianos smiles. “And if they don’t listen to you, they’re fools. You improved our military in three hours, anyone who doesn’t see how bright you are does not deserve your advice.”

Laurent’s blush gets brighter, and Auguste very nearly drops his jaw.  _Laurent likes him_ , he realizes.

Laurent seems to realize he’s not being proper, because he straightens and offers his hand. “Goodbye, Prince Damianos.”

Damianos laughs lowly. “Goodbye, Prince Laurent.”

He shakes Laurent’s hand, and, after chewing on his lower lip, Laurent speaks.

“You’ll visit?” he asks, lashes fluttering and Auguste doesn’t know whether to laugh - this is the first crush Laurent’s ever gotten - or to freak out because this is the  _Akielon prince_.

Damianos sends an uncertain look at Auguste, who busies himself with adjusting his horse’s rein.

“Whenever you want me to,” he promises.

Laurent hugs him - something that’s even rarer than him giving a compliment - and then runs towards Auguste. They both get on the horse, and Auguste finally stops trying not to smile.

“Goodbye, Prince Damianos.” He says as they leave.

After they’re far enough, he turns slightly to Laurent, whose cheek is pressed against his back. Auguste can feel the heat of it even through his clothes.

“So,” he says. “Damianos?”

“Don’t, Auguste, please,” Laurent pleads, blush intesifying, and Auguste laughs richly.

*

The peace treaty is signed less than a week later. True to his word, Laurent had pushed for peace - incessantly - and, after their Uncle was imprisioned, not many people were people were opposed. Everyone was tired of fighting.

The King doesn’t seem to take Laurent’s opinion very seriously, so Auguste pushes for peace, too. He believes in his brother, and, though having Delfeur under his reign would be delighting, he thinks the cost of continuing this would not be worth it.

After the peace treaty is signed - agreeing that Delfeur will be both under the reign of Vere and Akielos - Laurent spends the evening speaking excitedly to Damianos, and, though most people seem to find it annoying when Laurent speaks as he is now, Damianos seems to be listening with rapt attention, actually commenting on things Laurent says and not getting angry when Laurent tells him he’s wrong and proceeds to explain, in detail, why.

It’s… odd.

Auguste thinks that, when they’re older, Damianos might actually want to court Laurent, and the thought sends an odd feeling through his stomach. 

He’s going to need another few drinks to come to peace with the idea.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr @mfingenius <3
> 
> Please comment on what you liked, I love to hear your opinions :D


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